Coming Home
by sithchick
Summary: Logan FINALLY returns to Marie, only somethign is different about her. Can Logan help her face her inner demons?
1. The Return

Disclaimer, I don't own any of this stuff, k????????????? k.  
Rating, pg13, i mean like LOGAN is in it, gotta have swearing!  
* or Bold indicates thought!!!!!!!  
  
  
  
The road was dark, the sky black, no stars to shine and twinkle. But then again, that's how Logan liked it. He was a loner, but deep down in his heart, he knew that there was a little girl with white streaks in her hair who wanted to change that. And god help him, he wanted her. So that's why he was speeding south from Canada in the cold nights air, clinging to the desperate hope that she would still want him, would still need him to protect her.   
  
meanwhile at the mansion..........  
  
"Night Rogue, and happy birthday," Storm whispered as she closed the door to the now 19 year old's bedroom. Little did she know that Rogue hadn't slept in her own bed ever since Logan left. The girl with white streaks waited patiently, clad in a flannel shirt and boxers that clearly weren't hers. Promptly, at 12 am, she rose from her bed and ever so stealthily crept in to the room beside hers, one that smelled of Canada and cigars, one that smelled entirely of the Wolverine.  
"Miss you Logan," she whispered to empty air. She settled down in the big bed, clutching his dog tags to her heart, for fear of losing them. She grabbed a pillow and held it close against her. After Logan had left a few years prior, the Professor had locked Logan's room up, as he was expecting him back at some point. What the Professor never knew was that Logan had given Rogue a key to his (logan's) room in case she needed to talk to him or something. She used it every day, er, night.   
  
It wasn't too long after midnight that a slight roaring engine could be heard idling up to the mansion. Scott jerked awake beside his wife, Dr. Jean Grey Summers, and raced downstairs, pretty much guessing who would be crazy, inconsiderate, and rude enough to drive up engines roaring at that late hour.  
"Logan, welcome back!" Scott Summers, also known as Cyclops, stated as soon as a leather clad Logan walked into the mansion.  
"Yeah, fuck you too, Summers," Logan shot back. "Where's M-Rogue?" Scott just looked at him, slightly amused. Scott knew where Rogue would be, but just for old time's sake, decided to let Logan have the surprise of his life.  
"Should be in bed, if she has any sense, but why don't you stash your things first, the Professor kept your room open, I assume you still have the key?" Scott called over his should as he left. Logan just growled an affirmative and headed up to his room, tantalizingly close to Marie's.   
* I would go to her room now, but would she talk to me? After I abandoned her? * Logan worried as he stepped into his room, to caught up in his own thoughts to smell the object of his desires laying fast asleep in his bed. It was not until he dropped his bag and the figure stirred that he smelt and saw her. "Marie?" He said a bit loud.  
"What, huh?" A very startled Marie sat straight up in bed. "Aw, fuck, Logan, sorry, I'll leave," She whispered as she made to get out of the bed.  
"Wait Marie, stay and we can talk," he barely got the words out of his throat, as he was stunned by innocent Marie's shapely body under what he recognized as his clothing. "May I ask why you are wearing my clothes?" he almost whispered the question, and was stunned by her answer.  
"They help me sleep with my nightmares," she whispered, her eyes downcast.  
"All right, that's it, climb back in bed and tell me what has happened while I was gone," Logan ordered in his gruff voice.  
  
  



	2. The Explanation

"Well, when you left," Marie began, her voice light with excitement, "it was three days after the statue thing. I didn't wanna bother you with the nightmares, so . . ."  
"Back up a second, babe, what nightmares," Logan was confused, and he feared the worst. Marie just looked at him as if he were a train and she were a doe in its tracks.   
"I....I..." she stumbled over the words, unable to describe what she went through. "They were your nightmares," she finally whispered, as Logan pulled her closer. "Logan, I could hurt you!" fear shone brightly in her eyes as she tried to pull away.  
"I got all my clothes on, and I won't let you hurt me," he whispered in her hair, sending chills down her spine. "Now what about those nightmares?" He asked as he pulled her to him again.  
"I had your nightmares, but they didn't start until the night after the statue. They... well, because i had your memories, i could identify the nightmares as yours, as they had the Champaign drinking dude and the table and stuff in them," she paused when she looked at a very angry looking Logan. His expression changed when he looked at her, changing for a brief moment into...desire perhaps. For me? Marie asked her self. She shook her own dreams away and resumed her tale. "But when you left, and gave me your dog tags, the dreams were less, physically painful," Marie spoke softly and thoughtfully, "Before, I would wake up with a scream dieing in my throat, a painful tingling in my hands, and the desire to kill someone..." she trailed off as a very, very angry Logan rolled out of the bed and thrust his admantium claws into the floor time and time again, all the while letting out a stream of curses in many different languages. "Logan?" she whispered, afraid she had done something.   
"it wasn't you, darlin' " he explained as he smelled her fear, "but I failed to protect you," came out as a choked whisper as he slowly climbed back into the bed, inviting Marie to join him. "I'll refrain from destroying' anything else till you're done, k darlin' ?" When Marie nodded an affirmative, he relaxed again.  
"Well, anyway, I found that your dog tags banished the pain, but not anything else. So i kept having nightmares, and then one morning, I awoke from a really bad one and i was screaming while Jean was trying to take my temperature, in the med lab. I had been out for a few days. Jean kept me down there for a while, and when i left, gave me some of your old clothes, the ones you left behind. So i took to wearing them to bed. That helped considerable, as the nightmares became less real, but still there. A year after you left, to the day, I woke up in your room. I've slept here ever since, and have had very few nightmares," Marie finished her tale as Logan was gently brushing her (Marie's) hair. Logan was deep in thought when he felt something distinctly metallic pressed into his gloved hand. He looked down to see his dog tags.  
"No, Marie," he sighed with a chuckle. "They belong here," he whispered as he slipped them back around her neck. The look of peace and joy that came over her face was worth a million of her gentle and soft 'thank you's that followed. Logan didn't respond, as Marie was sleeping like an angel in his arms. "I love you Marie," he whispered the words that he would never have uttered around a fully conscious Marie, for fear of rejection. Thus he was surprised when he heard a slight "You too," come from the angles lips. Logan was very happy.  
"That's so cute," Jean and Scott muttered at the same time, after watching the whole dog tag scene.  
"What, who?" Logan yelped as he laid eyes on a very pregnant Dr. Jean Grey and a very smug Scott Summers. "Oh you two are in for it now..." he growled.  
  
  



	3. The Discovery

Scott's drunk, don't miss this one!!!!!!!  
  
  
  
  
"I think not," Scott said as he motioned to the sleeping Marie. "Wouldn't want to wake her now, would we?" he laughed drunkenly.  
"Jean, Scott, congratulations," Logan said cheerfully as he saw the wedding rings.  
"Thanks old buddy, old pal!" Scott laughed, leaning heavily on Jean for support.  
"Jeannie, why is Scott drunk?" Logan asked, eying the 'fearless leader' who was the 'moral perfect person' of the X-Men team. Jean just laughed and whispered "He found out that we are having a boy, and that you came home. He thought that it was cause to celebrate, a bit too much,"  
"I like Scotty boy like this!" Logan whispered as a VEEEEEEEEEEEEERY drunk Scott started whining to Jean "They are all wrapped up in each others arms, just one kiss? Please, please, please JEANIE POO?" Scott leaned in for a kiss and fell down the stairs with a loud OOF! "Yeah, I could definitely get used to this!" Logan could barely contain his laughter, but immediately hushed when Marie stirred in his arms.  
"We had better get going," Jean sighed as she went to collect her very drunk husband from the stairs he was foolishly trying to climb.  
"Jean, have him drink lotsa water and shit," he whispered as she closed the door to his room, "it helps with the hangover" (i have no idea if this is true so i made it up, 4give me!!!)  
As Jean and Scott finally made their way to their room, Logan turned his attention to the figure curled up in his arms. "You fit so nicely there," he whispered to Marie, knowing she couldn't hear him. "And you are so beautiful, so sweet, so everything," he sighed, not wanting to become lovesick. He studied her, her face, her hair, her body. His eyes finally came to rest on her arms. Seeing slight scratches at her wrists and arms, he took them in his hands, felt her wrists, where the arteries were. "Fuck," he whispered as he saw the white scars on her pale skin. The straight and long white scars that slit across the main arteries, in both her hands. "Holy fucking god damn SHIT!" he cried in a soft voice when he saw and felt how deep the cuts had been. Then he noticed the very very very faint scent of blood. Marie's blood.  
  
  



	4. The Why

warning, this part has some...... interesting subjects in it. if you don't like reading about suicide (if only briefly) skip this part, I swear it won't be absolutely essential to the rest of the series. again, warning for dark subjects! read at your own risk.  
  
  
She awoke slowly, wondering at why she was in someone's arms. Then the events of the night before came back to her in a flash. She allowed her self a small smile as she snuggled back into Logan's embrace. But she didn't know that he was already awake, and f she had seen his face, she would have bolted outta there in 2 seconds flat.  
"Marie," his voice startled her. "We need to talk about something," Logan's voice held the tone that warned that there was no way around the discussion.  
"'Bout what, sugar?" She asked in her sweet southern lilt. Logan turned her to face him as he lifted her arms to eyelevel.  
"'Bout this," he traced the scars on her wrists and arms. She violently turned away from him.  
"Go ahead, Logan," her voice was pure poison. "Go ahead and tell me that I need help. Tell me that I am a sick fuck and all I need is a little talking to get rid of my "mental problems," Go ahead and tell me that everything will be alright," by now, her shoulders were shaking with emotion. He just looked at her as her bitter voice began where she left off, "Tell me that there are so many people that care. Just fucking say it. Say that I need help, and that death isn't the way out. Everyone else did. "It's alright Rogue,"" she began to mimic the other X-Men's words. ""Let us Help You," "Just tell us about it, things will get better," they said. The don't know me. Just say it Logan." she was sobbing dryly as she made her statements. "Tell me how fucked up I am, just tell me God damnit Logan," All he did was to move closer and take her in his arms again as she kept telling him to say what the others had said, her voice muffled against his chest.  
"Wanna tell me why?" he asked gently, knowing how she felt without knowing. She just kept shaking in his arms, and he let her get rid of her pent up emotions as she screamed curses at him.   
"They told me that I would get over it," She finally whispered. "But i never have, never will. They said that You and Eric and Carol would leave me alone eventually," unshed tears made her eyes bright. "But Carol was a madwoman, ranting and raving inside my head about how she would kill me, how she would make me kill myself. But it wasn't her will that made me, it was my own, totally my own." The whispers suddenly grew bolder as she approached her next statement " You didn't want me to, said that I shouldn't, that you would protect me," she laughed bitterly "But what use are you in my mind when you can't physically keep me from the knife?" She asked to no one in particular, lost in a reverie. "I missed you so much, thought that maybe if i got hurt, you would come back. But after a month, i figured that there was no way you could know what happened, especially since Scott blamed you for my mental state." she said that last part almost thoughtfully. "But you didn't do it, you tried to make me stop. I did it for a month in here," she was whispering again. "It was weird, seeing the blood in the sink, washing it away, i felt free. Then your personality got the better of me after a month of shutting you away, and plus, Xavier made me get help," her tone was becoming bitter again as tears made tracks down her pale face. "I s'pose that it helped, but it wasn't pleasant, even if she meant well. The only good that came out of it was that I learned to shut out the separate personalities. You haven't told me that I will be all right, Logan," Marie noted his silence.  
"I don't plan on it, Darlin'" Logan said, his voice raw and coarse with emotion. "Besides, I shoulda been there for ya," Marie looked at him with those big, shining eyes, and snuggled closer, whispering "You're here for me now, sugar, and that's all that matters."  



	5. The Class

"Jubilation Lee," Scott Summers cried as he walked slowly into his English class, "You have Detention for talking too loudly, for screaming," he cried, holding his head and slumping to the floor, startleing his class into an awed silence. They had never seen him act so...... normal before.. "STOP EVERYTHING!" he yelled miserably, "DON'T TALK UNLESS I SAY SO, DON'T WALK UNLESS I SAY SO, DON'T BREATHE, IT'S ALL TOO LOUD!!" he screamed just as Marie ran into the room, her hair still sticking out from sleep (the discussion in the last chapter).  
"Sorry I'm late Sco . . . Mr. Summers," she breathed.  
"THAT'S IT!" Scott cried in exasperation as he slumped into the next room soundly closing the door with one last comment: "Rogue, teach class for me." Marie looked at the door, then at her "students" and laughed.  
"OK, well, any questions with the homework?" she asked, trying to be serious. "Bobby, Kitty, do stop making out in class, that is...well, get a room after class you two," she remarked, stifling giggles as her classmates looked at her as if she had morphed into a monster.  
"Hey darlin'," Logan exclaimed as he burst into the room, "Where's Cyke?" he asked. Marie just pointed to the connecting room as her gaze lingered on the retreating form of Logan.  
"All, all right people," Marie restarted, "I take it that there are no questions on the homework, so, here are some... worksheets? Yeah, that's it, here," she muttered as she began to pass out the worksheets. "Um, these don't look too long... due tomorrow?" she polled the class. Surprisingly, most of the votes were "yea"(u know, nay and yay) there were only four members of the class didn't vote, and they were occupied with members of the opposite gender (Kitty/Bobby, Jubilee/Remy ???). "Um, ok?" Marie whispered under her breath: "Man, I never knew, gotta respect Sco...Mr. Summers" All of a sudden, shouting could be heard from the other room.  
"ABSOLUTELY NOT!"  
"YOU'RE RIGHT, ABSOLUTLY NOT, I WILL NOT LET HER DO THAT, IT'S DANGEROUS," The voices belonged to Scott and Logan; Marie figured that Scott must have gotten over his hangover to be shouting that loud.  
"Ok, well um, gotta go talk to Scott," Marie muttered as she snuck out of the classroom and into the room where Scott and Logan were obviously fighting.  
"It's not RIGHT, Logan, she is so..." Scott began, but was shushed by Logan.  
"What is it, Marie?" he asked, knowing she was there by her scent.  
"I um, I heard yelling?" Marie found an excuse, as she always did, to talk to Logan. "What were you fighting about anyway?" Logan looked at Scott at this, but Scott didn't seem to see the glare sent to him.  
"We've decided that it is time for you to join the X-Men, should you choose," Scott beamed, "You could of course, get a college education, but we felt you would be more happy studying here, and you could join the team then," Scott then noticed the scowl that Logan put on as he explained.  
"Oh, I'd LOVE to!" Marie cried as she jumped Scott and gave him a careful hug.  
"Marie, you are NOT joining the X-Men, it's too DANGEROUS, Darlin'" Logan protested as he "secretly" delivered jealous glare to Scott as Marie hugged Scott, exclaiming her thanks. Marie noticed however and, enjoying the new perspective of things, continued thanking Scott to no end. "You. . . You're," Logan stuttered, trying to explain that she was so young, but was foiled as she moved towards him, with a definite swing to her hips.   
"What am I, sugar?" Marie purred, sliding up to Logan, getting shocked looks from Scott.  
* Sexy * Logan thought. Liking the thought, he ran it over in his head a few times: * Marie is...Sexy, very Sexy * While he was contemplating Marie's sexyness, she had stopped her sexy act and was exclaiming how excited she was that she could finally be part of the Team, and if she could be on first name basis with the rest of the Team and if she still had to take classes. When Logan finally came back to reality, he heard Scott answering the finale questions from Marie. When she realized this, she asked the jaw dropper, at least in the males' mind: "When can I get fitted for my cool leather outfit?" Scott thought that sounded too kinky to be Marie; Logan thought it was kinky, and was definitely the Marie he liked.  
"Um, well, before the next mission I guess," Scott muttered.   
"There isn't going to BE a mission with Marie, she, what if Sabertooth attacks her? She can't possibly be able to fend him off, she can't go, SHIT Marie, what was that for?" Logan cried out as Marie pinned him to the ground, a hidden knife at his throat.  
"I can handle Sabertooth," she growled, enjoying the confrontation.  
"Sure ya can," Logan muttered as Marie released him. Logan jumped to attack Marie, but she was expecting it, and soon had him at her knifes edge again. * So you can * Logan thought as he was again released.  
"Well, let's see how you do after one mission, then we can see if you handle it well," Scott compromised, seeing Marie shoot Logan with a triumphant glare. Right then, the bell rang, signaling the end of class. "Well, seeing as I don't feel up to teaching today, why don't you take my Phys. Ed class today, Logan?" Scott figured that it was time for payback.  
"Class, me, teach?" Logan stuttered, trying to digest the fact the Scott would deal such a low blow as to request Logan to teach snotty little teenagers for 2 hours.  
"Come on, Sugar," Marie teased, " Your class is waiting!" She led him off to the gym used by the students as Scott took some aspirin to deal with his pounding headache. Logan managed to put a very Loganish scowl on his face before entering the gym moments after Marie, but he almost fainted when he saw how many kids there were. 20 kids were faaaaar to many for the Wolverine to handle.  
  



End file.
